China’s Spicy Top Ten; Dishes that Power a Nation

China’s spicy food is legendary. While much of it is region-specific; from spicy Hunan to numbing Sichuan, there are also the nationwide favourites. The Nanjinger presents ten of the very best.

10. Suan Cai Yu (酸菜鱼）

Suan Cai Yu

“Suan Cai Yu” can be simply described as poached fish with pickled greens. The latter provides the sourness, which is the main taste of the dish, so the heat of chili is relatively low, compared with other spicy foods. It is a wise choice for beginners to spicy Chinese food for their first try.

9. Kou Shui Ji（口水鸡）

Kou Shui Ji

Literally translated as “Saliva Chicken”; you are sure to salivate when you even think about it. Stewed chicken is cooled and marinated in chili oil sauce and sesame paste, with additional fresh chilies and dried peanut. Different from other spicy dishes, this one is a cold appetiser, which means it is very suitable to eat in the summer.

8. Chuan Bei Liang Fen（川北凉粉）

Like Kou Shui Ji, this is also a cold appetiser, and always popular everywhere in China during summertime. “Liang Fen” is one type of jelly noodles, usually made of mung bean starch. It is crystal, smooth and cool just like jelly. “Liang Fen” itself is quite tasteless, so the sauce inside and other ingredients contribute the overall taste most.

7. Gong Bao Ji Ding（宫爆鸡丁）

Gong Bao Ji Ding

Also going by its Cantonese moniker, “Kung Pao Chicken”, this dish got its name in the late Qing Dynasty, from a governor of Sichuan, Ding Baozhen. In Sichuanese, “Gong Bao” means “small stir-fry”. The chicken is evenly cut into small pieces and then cooked over a high flame, and stirred constantly. Other ingredients, such as crunchy peanuts and juicy spring onions, work together to improve the dish’s oral sensation.

6. Ma Po Tou Fu（麻婆豆腐）

Ma Po Tou Fu

Originally obtaining its name from its creator, Ma Po, it is recorded that there was an old woman (indicates the word “Po”), who got some pock marks (indicates the word “Ma”) on her face, and was famous for her tou fu dishes. However, some guests told her that they wanted some meat rather than just tou fu, so now, not only tou fu, but also some beef or pork and other vegetables are included. Besides, broad bean paste and fermented black beans contribute a complexity of flavours; at the same time, the freshly grounded peppercorn powder enhances the level of the dish’s numbing taste.

5. Ran Mian（燃面）

Ran Mian

This dish originated from Yibin, Sichuan Province, and its name can be directly translated into “burning noodles”, for there is so much oil added inside, the noodles can even be burnt with a match. In fact, it is also composed of green vegetables and chopped peanuts with a salty and spicy meat sauce. The vegetables precisely balance the oily taste, while the peanuts taste especially good with the meat sauce.

4. Suan La Fen （酸辣粉）

Suan La Fen

Some people will call it “Hot and Sour noodles”, but in fact, in Chinese, “Fen”, made of sweet potato noodles, is chewier than common noodles, “Mian”, which is made of wheat (like “Ran Mian”), and usually translucent. Together with chili oil, a large amount of vinegar is added to create a both spicy and sour taste. There are numerous versions of “Sour and Spicy Fen” everywhere, but the most basic ones always contain ingredients such as dried peanuts and caraway.

3. Mao Xue Wang （毛血旺）

Mao Xue Wang

Personally, this one is my current favourite. It is like an “all-in-one” dish; ingredients comprising ham, duck blood jelly, tripe, large intestine, chicken gizzards and so on. For foreigners, this dish can be a little bit difficult to accept because of these weird ingredients and the heat level, but actually it is very popular among local people. So if you fancy a challenge…

2. Gan Guo（干锅）

Gan Guo

This can be seen as another member of the hot pot family; I would rather express it as “hot pot without water” or “Dry Pot”. So basically, Gan Guo is not soup based; its spiciness comes from seasonings such as ginger, chili, pepper and garlic. The bigger, main ingredients depend on personal taste; you can order whatever you like.

1. Huo Guo/Hot Pot （火锅）

Huo Guo/Hot Pot

This one is absolutely many people’s all-time favourite (including me). With the flavour depending on the soup base, one of the most popular is always the spicy option. However, if not everyone in your group can bear the chili, luckily, a new style called “Yuan Yang Pot” has emerged, one half spicy, and the other mushroom-based or tomato-based. You choose!

A high school student, Lucy Zhu is currently studying in Nanjing Foreign Language School and will go on to study media abroad. She loves music, literature and is particularly interested in cultural differences. She hopes to let more people know about Chinese culture.
高中生Lucy现在正在南京外国语学院学习。她计划大学本科出国学习媒体。她热爱音乐、文学，并且对不同文化之间的差异格外感兴趣。 她希望能让更多的人了解到中国文化。

The Nanjinger is the English media of record for the city of Nanjing in Jiangsu province, China.
This website is part of The Nanjinger brand, 100 percent owned and operated by SinoConnexion Ltd., a UK media company registered in 2008, and its subsidiary in China; Nanjing Hefu Cultural Media Co. Ltd. 南京贺福文化传媒有限公司.
The Nanjinger brand name comprises four publications plus a host of social media pages and is the only group of English publications offering high visibility online and print media in and around Nanjing.